Case Reports
2021-2022
Location:
Victoria
Serious Financial and Corporate Crime
On 15 June 2022, the County Court of Victoria convicted and fined Avanteos $1.71 million for failing to update defective disclosure statements, which the Court described as a very serious failure of corporate governance.
Location:
Queensland
Fraud and Specialist Agencies
Brett Evans was charged with 35 offences contrary to the CATSI Act in that he used his position as an employee of an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander corporation dishonestly, with the intention of directly or indirectly gaining an advantage for himself.
2020-2021
Location:
New South Wales
Organised Crime and National Security
Mr Chan Han Choi pleaded guilty to breaching sanctions imposed on the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (North Korea).
Location:
New South Wales
Fraud and Specialist Agencies
The offender submitted five claims supported by six false documents in support of applications for Carer Payment and Carer Allowance.
Location:
New South Wales
Serious Financial and Corporate Crime
Between about 14 October 2016 and 8 October 2019, Hopkins, a financial advisor, engaged in dishonest conduct in relation to the provision of financial services to 13 clients of his financial advisory business, QWL Pty Ltd.
Location:
Western Australia
Fraud and Specialist Agencies
Ms Melvin dishonestly obtained a total of $94,633.33 in Disability Support Pension (DSP) payments from Centrelink to which she was not entitled.
Location:
Western Australia
Serious Financial and Corporate Crime
Mr Kathiravelu was undertaking capital raising for a listed company and conspired with a business associate to ensure shares on the ASX would close higher than the price to be offered under the capital raising.
Location:
Victoria
Organised Crime and National Security
Tony Mokbel had been charged with importing 1.9kg of cocaine into Australia. One of the barristers that represented him was Nicola Gobbo. The Court of Appeal ordered a re-trial. The CDPP discontinued the re-trial as there was no public interest in prosecuting Mr Mokbel again.
Location:
New South Wales
Fraud and Specialist Agencies
Zheyuan Qiu and Ut Lei Lei plead guilty to 19 and 14 offences respectively relating to the attempted exportation of Australian wildlife via the postal service.
Location:
New South Wales
Human Exploitation and Border Protection
Mr Sanjay Korat pleaded guilty to, and was sentenced for, using a carriage service for hoax threat, contrary to s474.16 of the Criminal Code (Cth).
Location:
New South Wales
Serious Financial and Corporate Crime
On 4 February 2021, Justice Wigney of the Federal Court of Australia convicted Wallenius Wilhelmsen Ocean AS (WWO) with criminal cartel conduct.
Location:
Victoria
Fraud and Specialist Agencies
Dowlat Soliman entered a plea of guilty to one charge of obtaining a financial advantage by deception. Ms Soliman appealed against her sentence. In February the Court of Appeal refused the application for leave to appeal.
Location:
New South Wales
Human Exploitation and Border Protection
Philip Blowers was sentenced to an aggregate sentence of five years imprisonment, with a non-parole period of two years and eight months for offences relating to the transmission of child abuse material.
Location:
Queensland
Fraud and Specialist Agencies
A Crown appeal against the inadequacy of a fine imposed in relation to breaches of maritime safety of a tourist-carrying vessel was successful, resulting in an increase in the fine imposed on the defendant company from $25,000 to $40,000.
Location:
Victoria
Organised Crime and National Security
In mid 2020, Mr Ali was sentenced on charges but the Crown filed an appeal against the adequacy of this sentence. On 18 December the Court of Appeal upheld the Crown appeal.
Location:
Victoria
Organised Crime and National Security
Investigators discovered 1.4 tonnes of pure MDMA concealed in tomato tins in a shipping container in Melbourne. In November 2019 the Commonwealth Attorney-General referred the whole of Mr Visser’s case to the Court of Appeal to be heard and determined as if it were a fresh appeal. On 18 December 2020, the Court of Appeal dismissed Mr Visser’s appeal.
Location:
New South Wales
Organised Crime and National Security
Arsalan Khawaja falsified handwritten entries in a notebook indicating that another man was preparing to engage in, or assist with, a terrorist act.
Location:
Victoria
Organised Crime and National Security
Mr Phillip Galea was charged with one count of doing acts in preparation for, or planning a terrorist act and one count of attempting to collect or make a document likely to facilitate a terrorist act.
Location:
Queensland
Fraud and Specialist Agencies
Mr Muldoon, a qualified plumber, committed the fraud under the Commonwealth ‘Small-scale Renewable Energy Scheme’, lodging forms falsely stating that he installed air source heat pumps at various residences around Queensland.
Location:
New South Wales
Human Exploitation and Border Protection
In recent years, there has been a steady increase in referrals from the NSW Police in relation to matters involving Commonwealth drug and precursor importation charges. However, in 2019‑20 increase rose dramatically.
Location:
Victoria
Serious Financial and Corporate Crime
Five people have been sentenced following a series of investigations over an eight year period by the Australian Federal Police and the Australian Taxation Office.
Location:
New South Wales
Fraud and Specialist Agencies
Three co-conspirators defrauded the Department of Education, Skills and Employment of more than $9 million through child care fraud.
Location:
New South Wales
Fraud and Specialist Agencies
Co-offenders imprisoned after being found guilty of dishonestly obtaining more than $1.5 million from the National Disability Insurance Agency.
Location:
Western Australia
Human Exploitation and Border Protection
Mr Stiehler ordered a child sex doll from China on 1 December 2019 which was intercepted by Australian Border Force (ABF).
Location:
Queensland
Serious Financial and Corporate Crime
Judge Julie Dick SC sentenced 55 year old former Townsville financial advisor, Mr Anthony Dick to eight years imprisonment with a non-parole period of two years and eight months.